Hanging By A Moment
by Guardian Angel
Summary: Rehash of scene from "Rising," delving deeper. :-) Spoilers galore!


**Hanging By A Moment**

By **Guardian Angel** ([eyes_only1@yahoo.com][1])

2/15/01

**Warning:** Contains major **spoilers** for "Rising," and it's pretty much plotless… me giving in to the urge to rehash the scene at the end, and diving deeper to add thoughts.I can't get that scene out of my head!HELP! *lol*

**Rating:** PG-13 (minor swearing)

**Author's Notes:** Ok, so I really should be doing civics homework right now, reading the mountain of shit he expects us to plow through each night (as if we don't have other lives!), or doing my lab for marine bio, but…no.'Course not.The sexual tension in this episode was thick enough to choke on (YEAH!Utterly delicious!), and this just *wouldn't* let me go…

**More Author's Notes:** Oh, and if I can actually figure out how to do it without being completely repetitive, I am going to try to do a Logan POV of this scene at some later point in time. J

**Dedication:** For Dan, who's kept me endlessly amused this past week and bolsters my confidence, and who is turning out to be a great friend…and as always, for Jen, my darlin' sis, who calls me at 10:01 EST to give me little spoilers on the upcoming ep, and tell me "You're gonna die" over and over.Those little tidbits are what keep me going those extra two hours until I get to see it! ;-)

**Disclaimer:** Well, if I was clever and witty, like SnowCrash, I'd think of something hilarious to say to have you all laughing.But hey, at this point, (after studying for a civics test tomorrow…I'm screwed!) my brain is completely fried.I was hoping to get this posted tonight, but no dice…I'm gonna fall asleep at the computer if I don't go to bed now…and probably fall asleep in civics, too!Wow, see, this is what happens when I'm tired…I end up babbling, and getting sidetracked… Where was I?Oh, yeah, disclaimer.Suffice it to say that unfortunately I don't own 'em… Trust me, if I did, Michael Weatherly would have *much* better things to do with his time than act! *snickers* Woops, there I go again, slipping into the gutter.Bad me.I guess I should shut the hell up and get on with the story, huh? 

Wow, I think I've perfected the art of babbling… *rolls eyes*

Vielen Dank to Dan, for wading through this earlier today and actually making me willing to post it! :-) (translation- Thank you!) (Ana- he's starting to take over your roll, threatening me to finish! *snicker*)

*****

_Desperate for changing, _

_Starving for truth._

_Closer to where I started_

_Chasing after you_

_I'm falling even more in love with you, _

_Letting go of all I've held onto._

_I'm standing here until you make me move,_

_Hanging by a moment here with you._

_Forgetting all I'm lacking, _

_Completely incomplete._

_I'll take your invitation, _

_You take all of me._

_I'm falling even more in love with you, _

_Letting go of all I've held onto._

_I'm standing here until you make me move,_

_Hanging by a moment here with you._

_I'm living for the only thing I know,_

_I'm running and I'm not quite sure where to go._

_I don't know what I'm diving into._

_Just hanging by a moment here with you._

_There is nothing else to lose, _

_There is nothing else to find._

_There is nothing in the world that could change my mind._

_There is nothing else._

_ _

_"Hanging By A Moment," by Lifehouse._

*****

She could sense him, looming above her, even before she removed her fingers from over her eyes.

Stunned, her hands slowly drifted down, coming to rest, unnoticed, against his jacket.As Max stared up into his eyes, she felt his gaze sweep down over her face, lingering for a moment on her mouth, before the brilliant blue depths rose to meet hers again.

He was close, so very close.In his wheelchair, he had been the perfect distance from her, keeping that natural separation they both seemed to need.He hadn't pushed his wheelchair back at all, and so now, standing, he was so much closer.Invading her personal bubble.In fact, he was so near that if she took a deep breath, her breasts would probably brush against his chest.

Forcing her breaths to be shallow, she gazed up at him."It's like some kind of miracle."

His eyes seemed to burn deep inside of her brain, penetrating to see her deepest secrets, as he studied her.Tension, thick enough to cut, hummed between them.

"You're the miracle, you did this."His gaze never left her face; nothing existed in the world but the two of them."You gave me back my life."

As happy as she was to see him standing, the innuendo that she was some sort of savior rather bothered her.Ever since she'd escaped from Manticore, she'd spent her entire life looking out for no one but herself, beholden to no one, needing no one.No one needing her.The implication that she had this kind of power, the ability to heal, as well as kill, scared her. 

She smiled slightly, hidden irony in her expression.Go figure, the genius that had gone into making her what she was, the "genetically enhanced killing machine," as Logan was so fond of calling her, was also what enabled her to save her two best friends.

"Thank the clever fellas at Manticore." 

His gaze was still locked on hers, the intensity of it stealing her breath away.The man sure packed quite a punch!As they studied each other, in a sort of mutual stand-off, his mouth was mere centimeters from hers.Each time he exhaled, the warm air of his breath drifted across her sensitive lips, teasing her senses and making her head reel.

Tension thickened, deepened.Heat radiated off his powerful body, wrapping her in tendrils of Logan-scented warmth.She could easily smell the elusive, musky fragrance of his aftershave, coupled with a scent that was distinctively his own.The cat genomes that had been added to her DNA had intensified all of her senses, allowing her to see in the dark, and leap tall buildings in a single bound.Apparently, another thing that had been affected was her sense of smell, and now the fragrance of his skin was a powerful aphrodisiac that kept enticing her to reach out and touch.

Desperate, afraid that if things didn't change _now_ she'd do something that they'd both regret, she struggled to lighten the mood.

"I'd forgotten how tall you were." 

He chuckled, his lips curving into a slightly rueful smile.She was willing to bet that he knew a disturbing amount of what was going on in her brain, and was greatly relieved that he was at least nice enough not to point it out to her.

His legs, unused to the strain, suddenly buckled and sent him swaying against her.Her arms snapped out, moving from their unused position against his chest to wrap around his waist and support him.He leaned against her heavily, and the necessary movement brought them even closer together.She could feel the hard wall of his chest pressing into hers, his arms around her seeking support.As she quickly lowered him back into the wheelchair, Max couldn't help but notice how close his mouth was to hers.A mere whisper apart.An unwanted image of their lips meeting, clinging, exploring, exploded in her brain and she quickly forced it out.That was _not_ what she wanted to be thinking about right now, with temptation still so close!

Hastily she settled Logan in his chair before pulling back, eager to put some distance between them.He had the nerve to lounge there, sprawled unceremoniously in his seat and just watching her.Smirking, and waiting to see her reaction.His gaze still steady on hers, heat sizzled in the contact.His tongue darted out of his mouth to moisten his lips.Her gut clenched in response; who ever woulda thought that a guy licking his lips could be so sexy?

"There's always tomorrow."She hoped her nerves didn't show on her face, and was very thankful that her body was slowly starting to settle down, what with more distance between them and all.The press of his body against hers had been a little too unnerving for her tastes.

"Yeah, tomorrow."His frustration started to show on his face.Despite how far he'd come in such a short time, she knew he was impatient.

Her stomach clenched as he absently caught his lower lip between his teeth and nibbled, his gaze never leaving her face.The errant though that she'd like to be the one nibbling at him flitted through her head, before she hastily shoved it away.Now was _not_ the time to be having those kind of thoughts… She supposed she should probably thank the scientists at Manticore for giving her a will of iron; for that was surely the only way she was able to hold out even this long against Logan's innate sexiness.He was just so damn cute at times, she had no idea how she resisted him.Her lips tingled slightly, and her fingers itched to touch.

Resolutely, she dragged her thoughts away from that rather dangerous thread, and back to the matter at hand.

She couldn't even imagine what it must be like to be bound to a wheelchair, especially after having been hyped up to "be all that she could be."She'd probably end up killing herself if she was ever reduced to that state, Logan had surely adapted to it much better than she would have!

Smiling slightly at him, trying to show her encouragement and happiness at his progress, she replied, "You're gonna have to take it slow." 

She was shocked as his look turned positively sinful.Over the course of their relationship she'd seen him look happy, sad, teasing, angry, and just about every emotion in between.But she'd sure as hell never seen him look this _wicked_.

"I don't wanna take it slow, I want to go fast."His ocean-blue eyes laughed up at her, as if daring her to do…_something_.She wasn't quite sure what, but she _was_ sure that he was laughing inwardly at her for some reason.

Despite her confusion and misgivings, his obvious good humor and playful mood were beginning to rub off on her.Unable to resist the answering chord his wide, devilish grin was striking in her, she relented and smiled back at him.What the hell, a girl was allowed to have a little fun now and then, right?

"Oh yeah?" 

"Yeah." 

She wasn't really sure how it was possible, but somehow the enticing curve of his lips widened even more, those marvelous eyes of his sparkling with inner amusement…and something else.She shied away from calling that second emotion desire, but the thought was there, in the back of her mind.

As she debated the wisdom of what she was about to do, she was incapable of tearing her gaze away from the swirling devilment in his.Finally giving up, deciding to go with it and deal with the consequences later, she spoke. 

"Well, in that case, there's something I've been wanting to do with you ever since we first met.I think you might be up to it."

He raised one eyebrow, looking surprised that she'd taken him up on the silent dare of sorts that he'd been giving her.With a silent smirk, she jerked her chin towards the door before leading the way out of his penthouse and to the elevator.

Tonight was a night for impulses, surprises, discoveries.The consequences would be dealt with tomorrow.

*****

Comments? Criticism?Flames?Money? ;-) j/k

   [1]: mailto:eyes_only1@yahoo.com



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